Combat Rules
Combat is a key element of all games, Tyconian Traveller is no exception. The goal of the combat rules is to try to find a balance between an easy, fast system and one that is detailed and realistic. Since this game is specifically targeted to online play (via email, IMs, web, and voice), this system is slanted more toward simplicity than realism.
Table of Contents
- Combat Turn
- Action Points
- Combat Actions
- Unarmed Melee
- Armed Melee
- Fire Combat
- Direct Fire
- Burst and Automatic Fire
- Movement and Fire
Related Rules
- Skills: Usage and Improvement
- Modern Weapons List
- Melee Weapons List
- Archaic Weapons List
- Armor Charts
Combat Turn
A combat turn is 5 seconds long. During a combat turn, a player may perform one or more actions as detailed below.
Action Points
The number of actions that may be performed during a combat turn and the order in which they occur is determined by the number of Action Points a character has. The number of action points available is based upon a character's DEX as shown in this table.
| Action | Seconds | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEX | Points | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 1-2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 3-4 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 5-6 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 7-8 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 11 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 12 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| 13 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| 14 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| 15+ | 15 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
A successful Tactics roll will increase total action points by 1 for the next 5 combat turns (critical success increases total action points by 2). It costs two action points to survey the situation and make the tactics roll. The effects begin the following turn. The total number of action points available can not exceed 15.
Note that while the total available action points can not exceed 15, surplus points above 15 can be used to compensate for action point or DEX losses that occur during combat.
A successful Leader roll can be used to confer the action point bonus to other members of the party provided they are following the leader's orders during combat. If, at any point, a character stops following orders or become out of communication with the party leader, any bonus action points are immediately lost. They will be restored one combat turn after communications are restored or the character resumes following orders.
Bonus action points may either be taken from the party leader's Tactics roll or the character's Tactics roll but not both.
Combat Actions
A character may perform as many actions in a combat turn as their action point total will permit. The number of action points available per second of a combat turn is shown in the Action Points table above.
All actions within a given second are considered simultaneous. However, if two actions are in conflict, for example, a western style gunfight or PC A is trying to shoot NPC X before NPC X can shoot PC B, then roll a d20 + DEX for each character. The highest roll goes first. This should only be used to resolve conflicts.
Normally, a character will layout their actions for the entire combat turn in advance and note at which second each action will be completed. actions may be changed at the end of each second but any points spent thus far are lost.
Actions may extend across multiple combat turns. Simply keep track of the action points and on what combat turn the action will complete.
Compared to non-combat skills, combat actions are very fast. Most non-combat skills take significantly longer and many combat turns will pass in the meantime. Simply determine the time needed to complete the non-combat task (in seconds) to equate it to a number of combat turns.
The most common actions are shown below. Actions generally occur sequentially. That is to say, a character can only do one thing at a time. Some exceptions to this rule exist, mostly for movement combined with other actions. Actions that may be combined with other actions are noted below. Actions not shown on this list will be assigned a cost on a case by case basis.
Aim (1+): Aiming improves the chances to hit a target or controls hit location. It must be done immediately before firing (ie. with no other actions between the aiming and the firing) and the target must be visible during the entire time spent aiming. For each point spent on aiming, the character may either add 5 to their chance to hit or they may alter their hit location by one step. These may be combined. For example, a sniper is aiming at a target. He has a skill of 10 with his weapon. He spends 3 points aiming and chooses to increase his chance to hit by 10 (2 points) and alter the hit location by 1 step (1 point). Aiming may not increase your chance to hit by more than 15 nor move a hit location by more than 3 steps.
Dodge (2): The character attempts to avoid being hit by a armed or unarmed melee hit or other slow moving object. Bullets, arrows, and other fast moving objects can not be dodged. A Dodge action may not be combined with any other action except where specifically noted. Special Note: A Dodge occurs immediately even if the character lacks sufficient action points to complete it in the given second. However, no further actions can be taken until the full cost of the Dodge has been paid. This reflects the needed recovery time.
Fire (1): The character fires his weapon at any target which is currently visible to him. With most weapons this may be combined with a walk or trot. This action also covers shooting a crossbow. This does not include reloading.
Go Prone/Stand Up (2/3): A crawling character is considered to be prone. A prone character may stand up at any time. Standing up cuts the distance that can be moved during a phase in half. Going Prone may be combined with a walk, trot, or run. Doing so reduces the movement rate by 25%. Going Prone after a walk, trot, or run is essentially diving or dropping to the ground. Characters in a prone position offers a smaller target profile and reduce the effects of recoil.
Kneel/Stand (2): Kneeling or Standing from a kneeling position can be combined with a walk or a trot, doing so reduces movement rate by 25%. A Kneeling character provides a slightly more stable firing position reducing the effects of recoil. It costs 1 action point to change from kneeling to prone or vice versa.
Melee (Varies): This constitutes either an armed attack (3 points) with a melee weapon (which may be combined with a walk or trot) or an unarmed attack. There are four types of Unarmed Melee, one of which must be specified: strike (2 points), grapple (special), escape (special) and diving blow (special). Unarmed attacks may be combined with a walk or trot. Diving blows may only be combined with a trot or a run. Grapples and escapes use all available points while in progress. Diving blows consume all available points as the attacker closes with target. Once the dive begins, diving blows use 5 action points. The attack occurs in less than a second but the points are spent to reflect recovery time. The melee action covers shooting bows including nocking the arrow but not drawing an arrow from a quiver.
Mount/Dismount (5): Get on or off of a riding animal or a vehicle. This assumes the vehicle or animal is (relatively) easy and straight forward to access. If special actions are required to enter or mount a vehicle or animal, the cost may be higher.
Ready/Change Equipment (3): This can consist of putting down your rifle and taking out a knife, drawing a pistol, linking two ammo belts together, readying a radio to transmit, etc. Complex tasks may require multiple Ready/Change Equipment actions to complete.
Reload (Special): The number of action points varies with the weapon being reloaded. Reload costs (generally) do not include the cost of readying a new clip or ammo nor storing used clips unless explicitly stated otherwise.
Take Cover (3): The character dodges behind any close-by cover. The character may choose to end this action in either a prone, kneeling, or standing position.
Talk (1+): Use a communication device or otherwise attempt to communicate during combat situations. This reflects the difficulty of communicating during the chaos of combat as well as the need to follow proper communications procedures when using comm equipment. The exact number of points depends on the information being communicated and the method of communication (verbal, hand signals, etc).
Run: The character moves 6 meters (4 squares) each second. While running takes no action points, it precludes most other actions.
Crawl: The character moves 1/2 meters each second. While crawling takes no action points, it precludes most other actions.
Trot: The character moves 3 meters (2 squares) each second. Most actions can be combined with a trot. Trotting costs no action points.
Walk: The character moves 1.5 meters (1 square) each second. Most actions can be combined with a walk. Walking costs no action points.
Unarmed Melee
A character must be within 2 meters of the target to engage in unarmed melee attacks. There are four types of unarmed melee attacks, strikes, grapples, escapes, and diving blows. Strikes and diving blows are attempts to do damage to the target while grapples and escapes are attempts to hold the target or escape from a hold (respectively).
Strikes: Strike is an attack with the hand or foot (brawling skill). A strike from surprise or ambush automatically hits. Critical success attacks, do half maximum damage if blocked or maximum damage otherwise.
Blocks: A character may attempt to block a strike attack (brawling skill). A successful block negates the effect of a strike attack. Surprise or ambush attacks cannot be blocked (obviously). A critical success will do one point of damage to the attacker or negates the effects of a critical success on the attack.
Aimed Attacks: If a character chooses, he may concentrate his attacks on a particular location. Doing so halves the attackers skill but a successful hit strikes the location specified by the attacker, if it is not blocked. Critical success attacks, do half maximum damage if blocked or maximum damage otherwise.
Hit Locations: Hit locations are determined randomly from the Hit Location Table. Aimed, surprise, and ambush attacks do not roll for location, it is specified by the attacker.
Damage: Damage from unarmed melee is based on strength as shown in the following table.
| STR | Damage |
|---|---|
| 1-4 | 1d4 |
| 5-8 | 2d4 |
| 9-12 | 3d4 |
| 13-16 | 4d4 |
Armor: Armor is handled differently for Unarmed and Armed Melee combat than it is for Direct Fire combat. If an armored area is struck, 1d6 is rolled for each Armor Value (AV) point the armor has. The total of the roll is subtracted from the total damage done by the attacker. If the result is 0 or less, no damage is done.
Grappling/Escape: Grappling is handled differently from strike attacks. There are no hit locations and armor is ignored. Damage is calculated normally but each point done reduces the opponents effective strength. Once his strength is reduced to zero, he is under control and may not move or attack any further. The controlling character may not move either or the hold is lost. While the attacker tries to gain control, the defender may either attempt to escape or grapple with his attacker. Each successful escape roll by the defender reduces the control (increases his effective strength) by the amount of damage done. If the defender chooses to grapple with his attacker, the first one to reduce the other's effective strength to 0 gains control. If a character chooses to switch from grapple to escape, all control he has accumulated is lost (effectively he has let go to try to escape).
Diving Blow: A diving blow is an attempt to throw oneself at the enemy and knock him down. Blocking is not possible and armor is ignored. Attacks from surprise or ambush automatically hit. Attacks may be dodged by the defender. If the attack is not dodged, it hits. If it is dodged, the attacker is knocked down.
If the attack hits, either the defender or the attacker will be knocked down and suffer damage. If d6 + (2 x STR) of the attacker is > STR+END of the defender, the defender is knocked down and takes damage equal to the difference. Otherwise the attacker is knocked down and takes damage equal to the difference. If the difference is 0, the attacker and the defender are knocked down but neither suffer any damage. If the attack is from surprise or ambush, only the STR of the defender is used in the comparison.
Armed Melee
Armed combat is conducted with melee weapons.
Range: There are two ranges for armed melee, short and long. Short is 2 meters (same as unarmed melee), long is 3 meters. If a character with a long ranged weapon faces off with a character with a short ranged weapon (including unarmed melee), the character with the short ranged weapon must add one to the action point cost for all attacks. Blocks are conducted at normal costs.
Hit Procedure: Armed melee attacks are done using the skill appropriate for the weapon being used. Armed melee attacks from surprise or ambush automatically hit. Critical success does maximum damage or disarms if blocked.
Blocks: If a character is hit with an armed melee attack, he may attempt to block. The block is made using the skill appropriate for the blocking weapon. Unarmed characters may not block armed melee attacks. If successful, the block negates the attack. Critical success disarms attacker or negates effects of critical success on attack.
Note that some common sense must be applied. An attack with a broadsword will be extremely hard to block with a dagger. In such situations, the GM may either disallow the block or allow it at a suitable difficulty level such as Formidable or Impossible.
Hit Location: Hit locations are rolled randomly. A character may attempt to aim his blows but all such attacks are at half skill. If the aimed blow is successful and not blocked, the location previously specified by the attacker is struck. Conditions may prohibit certain hit locations from being selected.
Damage: Damage inflicted by a melee attack varies with weapon used. The damage die used with melee weapons is a d6 and the total damage done may be modified by the strength of the attacker. See the Melee Weapon Charts for details.
Armor: Armor is handled differently for Unarmed and Armed Melee combat than it is for Direct Fire combat. If an armored area is struck, 1d6 is rolled for each Armor Value (AV) point the armor has. The total of the roll is subtracted from the total damage done by the attacker. If the result is 0 or less, no damage is done. For every 6 points stopped by armor (round off), 1 point of blunt trauma is taken to the hit location.
Fire Combat
Direct fire combat occurs when the attacker can see his target and fires directly at it. A character can generally only fire one weapon at a time and may not fire a weapon for which he has no skill. Indirect fire combat is usually conducted when the gunner cannot see the target and instead fires at an angle to lob his round over intervening terrain obstacles with the intention of it coming down in close vicinity of his target. For the most part only certain heavy weapons are capable of indirect fire.
Rate of Fire: All weapons have a Rate of Fire (ROF). ROF is the number of shots that may be fired during a single combat turn and can range from 1 to 10, depending on the weapon. A weapon's fire is spread as evenly as possible across the turn. Some weapons have a reloading method instead of a ROF. Such weapons hold only one shot and must be reloaded before firing again. The reloading rate is the number of action points required to reload the weapon.
Weapons have either a number or a letter code for their ROF. The letter codes are defined below:
SS - Single Shot. The weapon fires once then must be reloaded. The cost (in action points) to reload varies by weapon and is listed as a number following the SS under the ROF on the Modern Weapons chart.
BA- Bolt Action. Each time the weapon is fired, the bolt must be worked to eject the spent round and chamber a new one. Bolt action weapons typically take 2 action points to operate the bolt and reload the weapon.
LA - Lever Action. Each time the weapon is fired, the lever must be worked to eject the spent round and chamber a new one. Lever action weapons typically take 2 action points to operate the lever and reload the weapon.
PA - Pump Action. Each time the shotgun is fired, the pump must be worked to eject the spent round and chamber a new one. Pump action weapons typically take 2 action points to operate the pump and reload the weapon.
DAR - Double Action Revolver. A double action revolver does not need to be cocked between shots as that is done as part of pulling the trigger. Because of the extra force needed to fire and cock the weapon, double action revolvers cost twice the normal number of action points to fire (2 points).
SA - Semiautomatic. This weapon fires once per pull of the trigger. Part of the force from firing the round is used to eject the spent round, chamber the new round, and cock the weapon. Semiautomatic weapons can normally fire as fast as the trigger can be pulled. However, rapid fire can cause the weapon to jam. The chance of a jam occurring is based on the number of shots fired within a given turn. Roll 2d6+3, if the result is less than the number of shots fired, the weapon jams. A jam cost d4 action points to clear. Note: Energy Weapons do not jam.
Weapons with non-standard semiautomatic rates of fire have a number following the SA on the Modern Weapons chart. Non-Standard fire rates typically are found on energy weapons which have a fixed recharge rate. They may also be found on weapons that have a slow reload cycle. Because of their slow reload rates, these weapons rarely jam.
Automatic Fire: Weapons with a number instead of a code are capable of Fully Automatic fire as well as Burst and Semiautomatic fire. The number represents the number of rounds in a burst of automatic fire. Burst mode fires the listed number of rounds with each pull of the trigger. Each pull of the trigger in Burst mode costs 2 action points. Automatic mode fires 10 times the listed number of rounds per turn. Automatic fire continues until the turn ends or the weapon is empty. It takes all available action points during the time it is being conducted.
Regardless of the mode, characters can only attack up to three different targets in a single turn and then only if all three are visible through the front hex face of the character.
Reloading: All weapons have a Mag listing which is a number sometimes followed by a letter. This represents the number of rounds in a magazine for that weapon and the type of magazine used. Unless otherwise specified, the magazine is a box or clip that holds the specified number of rounds. Other possibilities are:
R - Revolver. Revolvers use a cylinder that hold 6 shots which must be loaded individually. It costs 2 action points to load one round into the cylinder. This assumes the loose rounds are readily available. A quick loader is available which allows a full reload at a cost of 5 action points.
I- Individual. Rounds must be loaded one at a time. It costs typically 2 action points to load each round.
B - Belt. Rounds are on a belt. It typically costs 16 action points to replace the belt or two gunners can pay 8 points each, if the weapon has a trained gunner crew.
C - Cassette. A Cassette is a large, self-contained ammo feed system. It typically costs 50 action points to replace a Cassette. This cost can be shared between two gunners (25 points each), if the weapon has a trained crew.
Direct Fire Hit Procedure
The chance of hitting a target depends primarily on three things: skill, range, and recoil.
Skill: The skill is the one appropriate to the weapon being used. This skill is used for all quick shots. The first shot following an aim action will receive the benefits of the aim. All subsequent shots will be quick shots until another aim action is conducted. Note that for a shot to be aimed, the target must have been visible through out the entire aim action and the shot must be the very next action taken. A critical success on attack does maximum damage.
Range: There are five ranges to direct fire, short, medium, long, very long, and extreme. The value printed in the range column for each weapon is its short range in meters. Medium range is twice this number, long range is 4 times this number, very long is 8 times this number, and extreme range is 16 times this number. A character's skill with a weapon is the skill used at short or medium range. At long range, their skill is halved, at very long range their skill is quartered (round off), and at extreme range their skill is a tenth (round off). Some weapons (like shotguns) refer to close range. Close range is 1/2 short (or 1/2 the value printed in the range column).
| Range Band | Meters | Skill Adjustment |
|---|---|---|
| Short | 0 - 30 | x1 |
| Medium | 31 - 60 | x1 |
| Long | 61 - 120 | x1/2 |
| Very Long | 121 - 240 | x1/4 |
| Extreme | 241 - 480 | x1/10 |
Rifle scopes or electronic sights add 15 and 20 meters (respectively) to the effective range listed when used (thus extending the short and medium ranges). Scopes are only effective with aimed shots. Not all weapons can accept a scope. Generally only rifles with recoils of 3 or less can mount a scope since greater recoils run the risk of jarring the scope's alignment or injuring the user.
Recoil: Recoil is a measure of how much a weapon kicks when fired. Some weapons are recoilless and recoil is ignored for mounted or heavy weapon. Each weapon has a recoil listing. Automatic weapons have a listing for single shots and for bursts. With each shot fired, total the shots fired thus far within the current phase and multiply by the recoil for the given weapon. Remember bursts have a different recoil number than single shots. If the result is less than the STR of the character, recoil is not an issue. If, however, it is greater than the character's STR, each point the total recoil exceeds the STR rating, the character's chance to hit is decreased by 1. For simplicity, recoil resets each turn.
For example, a character with a STR of 8 who fires 5 shots from a semiautomatic pistol with a recoil of 3 would see no effect on his first shot (total recoil = 3) or second shot (total recoil = 6). But on his third shot, the total recoil would be 9 or one more than his STR rating so his skill would be reduced by (recoil - STR) = (9 - 8) = 1. The fourth shot would have a total recoil of 12 so his skill would be reduced by (12 - 8) = 4. Finally, his fifth and final shot would have a total recoil of 15 and an associated penalty to his skill of 7.
Pistols: If a pistol is fired from a stationary, braced position, using both hands, the printed recoil is reduce by 1. In the example above, if the character had been braced and using both hands, recoil would not have been in excess of his STR until his fifth shot and then only be 2 points so his skill would have only been reduced by 2 instead of 7.
Two Weapons: If a character has a weapon in each hand, his STR, for purposes of recoil, is reduced by 1 point. If he fires both weapons within the same second (effectively simultaneous fire), his STR is reduced by 2 points for purposes of recoil. When firing one weapon at a time (one shot total within a given second), the skill with the off handed weapon is reduced by 5. When firing simultaneously (two shots within a given second), the skill with the primary hand is reduced by 2 and the off hand by 7.
Burst and Automatic Fire
Automatic weapons can be fired in Semiautomatic, Burst, or Full Automatic mode. In Semiautomatic mode, each pull of the trigger fires one round. In burst mode, each pull of the trigger fires the number of rounds listed in the ROF (Rate Of Fire) column. Thus a weapon with an ROF of 4 would fire 4 rounds per pull of the trigger. The fire mode must be declared at the beginning of the phase. Weapons fired in Burst mode, never get the benefit of aiming.
Automatic weapons fire is handled differently from individual or burst shots. Automatic fire is more like panic fire. The character essentially fires from the hip and sprays an area with bullets. In full auto mode, the character has limited control of the weapon thus his skill with the weapon does not come into play. When automatic fire is conducted, the character rolls a number of d6 equal to the number of rounds fired. The number of rounds fired is equal to 10 times the ROF of the weapon per phase. If there is more than one ROF listed, use the highest value. If a the weapon's ammo clip holds fewer rounds than this number, then the number of rounds fired is equal to the number of rounds currently in the clip. Each 6 rolled is a hit. For example, a weapon with a ROF of 3 will fire 30 rounds per phase (assuming the clip currently holds at least 30 rounds). In this case the character would roll 30 d6s. All 6's rolled represent a hit on the intended target.
Range - The number of dice rolled is reduced for each range beyond short. The reduction is based on the ROF of the weapon. The table below indicates amount of reduction per range band. Automatic fire is not possible for targets beyond long range. The table assumes enough ammo is present to complete the phase. Adjust the reduction to be proportional to the number of rounds actually fired. Also, note the minimum dice requirements below.
| ROF | Rounds Fired |
Reduction For Medium |
Reduction For Long |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 30 | 10 | 20 |
| 5 | 50 | 20 | 40 |
| 10 | 100 | 30 | 60 |
For targets at less than short range, the chance to hit increases significantly. If the target is less than 1/2 of short range, any 6's or 5's rolled hit.
Recoil: Recoil is calculated by taking 5 times the burst recoil. If the recoil exceeds the character's STR, reduce the number of dice rolled by twice the difference. Note the minimum dice requirements below.
Danger Zone: A danger zone exists around any target of automatic fire. Any dice which miss the intended target may strike other targets within this danger zone. The danger zone is an area 3 meters to either side of the target. Any object within that area is subject to attack by the rounds that missed the primary target. After the roll to hit the primary target has been made, half the dice that missed (round up) are rolled. Any 6's are hits on other targets near the main target (assigned by the GM). The remaining dice are saved and used to attack any target that in a line behind and to either side of the main target. Again, any 6's rolled are assigned as hits by the GM to these tertiary targets.
Minimum Dice: Weapons with ROF's of 3 or 5 will never have the number of dice rolled reduced to less than 10d6 due to the effects of Recoil and Range. Similarly, weapons with ROF's of 10 will never have the number of dice rolled reduced to less than 20d6 due to Recoil and Range. Again, adjust these minimums to be proportional to the number of actual rounds fired.
Movement and Fire
Advancing Fire: In general, characters may not fire while crawling or running. No aimed fire is possible while walking or trotting but characters may fire quick shots or bursts normally. Full auto fire may only be combined with walking. For purposes of controlling recoil, however, a walking character's strength is reduced by 2 and a trotting character's strength is halved, round down.
Fire From a Moving Vehicle: Characters may not conduct aimed fire from a moving vehicle but may conduct any other type of fire. The character's strength is halved (round down) for the purposes of recoil.
Fire From the Saddle: Characters may conduct fire from an animal mount as if they were not mounted with two exceptions. Their movement restrictions are based on the animal's rates of speed. Thus weapon fire is prohibited from a running animal but is permitted from a walking or trotting animal with the same restrictions as a moving dismounted character. Secondly, their base attack skill will be the smaller of their weapon skill and their appropriate riding skill. Naturally, aimed fire is not permitted from a moving animal. Also note that some animals may not react well to combat situations.
Target Movement: If a target has moved at a run in the current second, the attacker's skill is reduced by half.
Special Cases
Target Obscured: If the target is partially obscured (in brush, fog, mist, light smoke, etc.), the attacker's skill is halved.
Firing At Riders: When firing at mounted targets, the attacker must specify the target as the rider or the mount. If an individual shot misses, there is a 10% chance it will strike the other target. For automatic target, misses are re-rolled as per automatic fire rules and applied to the other target but half of all hits are applied back to the primary target.
Guided Weapons: Some weapons are guided. There are three types of guided weapon, operator guided, designated, and homing.
Operator guided weapons are steered to the target by the attacker. There is no range penalty on the attack skill but the operator must continue to aim until the weapons strikes its target. This may mean the operator is exposed to attacks during that time depending on the guidance system being used.
Designated weapons are launched by the attacker but are guided by a second individual who paints the target. The chance to hit is the designator's skill, modified for range, at 'hitting' the target with his designator. Radar guided is automatic as long as the target remains on the radar screen of the designator.
Homing weapons are fire and forget. The chance to hit is dependent on the operator's skill at marking the initial target. Once launched, the weapon will track the target with on-board tracking equipment.
Indirect Fire
Indirect fire involves firing at a target the attacker can not see and for which he is being given firing directions by a forward observer.
Calling Fire: For indirect fire to be possible, a forward observer must be in a position to see the target (which must be stationary but can be a place where the observer expects the real target to be when the shot is fired). The gunner and the observer must converse for 6 combat turns (30 seconds) prior to the commencement of the fire. After fire has begun the forward observer can call in corrections but normal communications rules must be followed in particular, the gunner must stop firing to communicate with the observer.
Calling Orbital Fire: Orbital fire is conducted exactly as other indirect fire.
Chance to Hit: The initial chance to hit with indirect fire is the lower of the forward observer's skill and the gunner's skill. Small weapons indirect fire is half the attacker's skill with the weapon. After a shot, corrections may be called in. There must be at least one round fired between corrections. Each correction adds 10% to the chance to hit and subtracts one from the distance roll for missed rounds.
Accuracy: For ground based fire, the maximum accuracy is 75%, for hand-held weapons, the maximum accuracy is 60%, and for orbital fire, the maximum is 85%. Additionally, deviation distance rolls may not be reduced by more than 5 for ground based, 3 for hand-held, and 7 for orbital attacks.
Deviation: If the roll to hit is missed, the round deviates from its intended target. Roll a d10 for the distance. Multiply by 5 meters for hand-held weapons, by 10 meters for howitzers, and by 20 meters for rockets and orbital attacks. If the weapon is firing at greater than half its indirect fire range, double the results. A second d10 is rolled for direction.
Subsequent Shots: All shots after the first deviate around the point of impact of the first shot regardless of whether it hits the target or not, however, the deviation distance roll is reduced by 5 for all subsequent shots. If a correction is called in, the chance to hit is increased by 10% and a new to hit roll is made (subsequent shots do not have a new to hit roll until a correction is made). Additionally, 1 is subtracted from the deviation distance rolled up to the maximums stated above.
Thrown Weapons
Any hard object may be thrown. The effective throwing range is twice the character's STR in meters for an object of 1 Kg or less. If the object weighs more than 1 Kg, the throwing range is reduced accordingly. A thrown object does 1d6 + STR/3 (round up) in damage, where STR refers to the Melee damage vs STR table (unless otherwise specified). Hit location is determined randomly. Skill to hit is Thrown Weapons. Long range is up to twice effective range. Chance to hit is halved at long range.
Objects of up to 1 Kg or less may be lobbed at an area (as opposed to thrown at a target). This is typically how Grenades are thrown. When an object is thrown or lobbed at a target area, it is treated similarly to Indirect Fire. Effective range is three times STR in meters, long range is twice this distance. Missed throws deviate as with indirect fire. Deviation is in 1 meter increments for effective range targets and 2 meter increments for long ranged targets. No deviation may exceed half the distance thrown. If the target remains stationary, every subsequent throw in increased by 10%. Armor protects as detailed in Melee combat.
A knife may be thrown. It will do 1d6 + STR/2 (round up), where STR refers tot he Melee damage vs STR table).
Flame Throwers
Flame throwers or flamers are a special type of weapon. They may be fired in one of two modes. The first mode is directed. In directed mode, the operator is trying to flame a particular target (location, object, creature, or person). The second mode is area. In area mode, the operator is spraying an area with flame. Area mode is used to attack many targets at once or to provide cover by forcing targets in the area to seek safety while directed mode is used to terminate a specific target.
Directed fire lasts from 2 - 5 seconds (using all available action points during each second). The chance to hit and amount of damage is based on the duration of the spray. Note that the target must be within range and unobstructed for flame attack to be successful. The table below shows the chance to hit, the amount of damage done, and the number of possible hit location as a function of spray duration. At the end of each second, the number of possible hit locations is determined. A to hit roll is made for each location and damage is rolled for each successful hit. This process is repeated for each second the fire is directed at a given target.
| Second | # of Locations | Chance to Hit | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | d3 | 1 in 6 | d8 |
| 2 | d4 | 1 in 5 | 2d8 |
| 3 | d4+1 | 1 in 4 | 3d8 |
| 4 | d4+2 | 1 in 3 | 4d8 |
| 5 | d4+3 | 1 in 2 | 5d8 |
Damage is cumulative over the course of the phase. Any location taking 8 or more points of damage, will ignite and continue to burn for a number of seconds equal to the total amount of damage done to that location. Each second of extra burning does an additional 1 point of damage. This extra damage can be stopped by extinguishing the fire.
A flamer is hard to dodge because of the area effected. As such, a successful dodge decreases the number of hit locations rolled by 1. A critical dodge decreases the hit locations by 2 and decreases the chance to hit by one step (to a minimum of 1 in 6). Additionally, again because of the area effected, anything within adjacent hexes (or squares) takes damage at one step back from the target. In other words, adjacent targets take no damage in the first second. In the next second, they are attacked at the one second level, etc. Thus a 5 second spray would do up to 4 seconds of damage to adjacent targets.
Area attacks are attacks where the flame is sprayed over a specified area instead of at a single target. The area is a wedge shape in front of the firer and out to the range of the weapon. Objects take damage and hits based on range as shown in the following table.
| Range | # of Locations | Chance to Hit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 - 3 Meters | d4 | 1 in 4 |
| 4 - 6 Meters | d3 | 1 in 5 |
| 7 - 9 Meters | d2 | 1 in 6 |
Area attacks last 3 - 5 seconds. Successful hits do 1d8 in damage. Hits are checked for each second. Because such a large area is being sprayed with flame, area attacks can not be dodged but can be avoided by taking cover behind an object that will block the flame or by fleeing the area being flamed. When fleeing the area, a successful dodge, during the second when the character's movement will carry him out of the danger area, will prevent any hits for that second. An unsuccessful dodge will reduce the number of hit locations by 1.
As above, any location taking 8 or more points of damage, will ignite and continue to burn for a number of seconds equal to the total amount of damage done to that location. Each second of extra burning does an additional 1 point of damage. This extra damage can be stopped by extinguishing the fire.
Explosives
At the most basic level, explosives have a damage rating and a burst size. The damage rating is the number of dice of damage done at the center of the burst (the inner most hex or square). The burst size is the radius of the burst in meters. For simplicity, damage normally decreases at a rate that will never be faster than 2D / meter nor slower than 1D / 2 meters. Round damage to the nearest 1/2 die. The actual burst radius can be set within these limits by the manufacturer (done through materials used in construction of the casing and the nature of the explosive material itself).
Example: Suppose a hand grenade is rated a 4D in damage. That grenade will have a burst size associated with it. That burst size is determined by the manufacturer but will be at least 2 meters and have a maximum of 8 meters.
Damage is determined by rolling the number of dice appropriate to the distance from the center of the explosion. Anything located directly at ground zero (within the first 1/2 meter) will take double damage. Because of the nature of explosions, damage is done to multiple locations. The number of locations is equal to the number of dice rolled (round up). Each location takes damage independently, that is roll the appropriate number of dice for each location separately. If the number of dice rolled exceeds the total possible hit locations, some locations will take multiple hits. If the number of dice rolled is less than the total possible hit locations, no location will be hit more than once.
Example: Suppose the hand grenade from above has a damage rating of 4D. It has a burst rating of 4 (in other words, it loses 1D in damage per meter). Suppose further, three people are caught in the explosion, one at ground zero, one within one meter and one within 3 meters. The person at ground zero (within 1/2 meter of the explosion) will take double damage or 8 dice. He will take this damage to 8 hit locations. Since Humanoids only have 7 hit locations, one location will take two sets of hits. Each location will take 8 dice in damage. Unless he is very lucky, this poor person will most likely be blow to bits. The next person out will take 4 dice in damage to each of four randomly determined locations. No location will be hit twice. Again, this poor person is likely to suffer critical injuries. The final person caught in the blast will only take 2 dice of damage to two separate locations (being within 3 meters). There's a good chance he will survive. The following table summarizes the damage done and hit locations hit at each range interval:
| Range in Meters | Dice Of Damage |
# of Hit Locations |
|---|---|---|
| 0 - 1/2 | 8 | 8 |
| 1/2 - 1 | 4 | 4 |
| 1 - 2 | 3 | 3 |
| 2 - 3 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 - 4 | 1 | 1 |
All of the above assumes standard explosives (grenades, dynamite, missiles, etc.). Some explosives are designed for specific purposes. Most often these are shaped charges. Generally, shaped explosions are treated as normal explosions in the direction of the charge but their radius is quartered and their damage halved in all other directions. Claymores, land mines, and HEAP grenades are all examples of shaped charges.
Smoke and Illum explosives generally have little or no damage associated with them but simply emit smoke or light. In such cases, the burst size is the area effected. Obviously, wind or other obstacles might alter the area effected.
Incendiary grenades do their damage by covering the burst area with flaming liquid. The damage listed is the amount of damage taken per second until the flame is extinguished or burns out (typically 5 seconds, 1 phase). Note that flaming liquid may ignite other flammables and continue to cause damage as a result of secondary fires. Like explosives, damage is reduced as a function of radius.
Sonic and EM Pulse grenades cause damage from their emissions rather than from an explosion. Otherwise, they are treated as normal explosives for the purposes of these rules.
Cover and Explosives: If someone is behind cover during an explosion, the cover decreases the damage as explained in the armor and penetration rules elsewhere. Explosives with Nil penetrations will be deflected by cover. All other penetrations will have their damage reduced accordingly.
Armor and Explosives: Armor protects the wearer from explosions in the same manner that it protects from other attacks. Explosives with Nil penetrations will still do concussion damage based on the number of dice stopped as explained in the armor rules below.
Wounds and Damage
Each character has a number of hit point for each hit location. For the Head, this is (STR + END)/2 (round up). For their chest it is 3 x (STR+END)/2 (round up). For all other locations it is (STR+END).
Weapons have a damage value which is the number of dice thrown when a hit is achieved. Use d8's for all modern weapons. If the hit location is protected by armor, the amount of damage taken will be reduced. Armor has an Armor Value which is the number of dice of damaged stopped by the armor. Thus an armor with an AV of 3 will subtract 3 dice from the number of damage dice thrown for the weapon (unless specified otherwise elsewhere in these rules - See Unarmed and Armed Melee). If the number of dice thrown is reduced to 0 or less, the shot can not penetrate the given armor.
Some weapons and ammo combinations have penetration values that are different from the norm. These are called High, Low, or Nil Penetration weapons. High Penetration weapons are exceptionally good at penetrating armor while Low Penetration weapons are exceptionally bad at penetrating armor. Nil Penetration weapons means that any armor will prevent penetration.
High Penetration weapons modify the armor rules above as follows:
Instead of the damage being reduced by 1 die for each Armor Value, only 1/2 die will be subtracted. Thus a High Penetration weapon doing 3 dice of damage against an AV of 3 would lose 1.5 dice of damage.
Low Penetration weapons modify the armor rules above as follows:
Instead of the damage being reduced by 1 die of damage for each Armor Value, 2 dice will be subtracted. Thus a Low Penetration weapon doing 3 dice of damage against an AV of 1 would lose 2 dice of damage.
For each d8 of damaged stopped by armor, the wearer takes 2 points of blunt trauma to that location. Any damaged not stopped is applied to the location as well. If an armor location is penetrated, a note should be made. Any location penetrated twice without repairs is reduced by 1 AV. If the to hit roll was a critical success, the weapon does maximum damage.
Cover acts as armor. If a hit location is covered or protected, the round must penetrate the armor of the protection (wall, vehicle, etc.) to reach the target. Blunt trauma is not taken for dice stopped by cover.
Wound Effects
Knockdown: If a character suffers hits in one phase whose total exceeds his DEX, he is knocked down and my not conduct any action for the next 1 phase (5 seconds). Non-impact damage such as fire does not count toward a knockdown.
Stun: Any damage done to the head (including non-impact damage) may stun a character. Roll 2d6 and add the number of damage points. If the result is greater than the character END, he is stunned. A stunned person falls unconscious and remains so for a number of combat turns equal to twice the number of points the total exceeded their END. For example, a END 8 character gets wounded in the head for 5 points. 2d6 are thrown and come up 5 for a total of 10, 2 higher than his END so he is stunned and falls unconscious. He will remain out for four phases (20 seconds).
A stunned character may be revived with a stimulant or other means (cold water to face). If a stimulant is used, reduce the stunned time to seconds from phases. If a non-stimulant is used (such as the cold water), reduce the stunned time to seconds from phases but double the number of seconds. Continuing the example above, if a stimulant is administered, the character would revive in 4 seconds vs 4 phases. If cold water or other non-medical means are used, he would revive in 8 seconds (twice the time if a stimulant had been used).
Scratch: Any time a location has received hits totaling up to 1/4 the hit capacity, that location has received scratch wounds. The first occurrence of a scratch wound in a 24 hour period causes the character to hesitate for 2 seconds. All subsequent scratch wounds have no additional effects.
Slight: Any time a location has taken a total number of hits between 1/4 and 1/2 of its hit capacity, it is slightly wounded. The first slight wound reduces the character's DEX by 2. Additional slight wounds have no additional effect. If an unwounded character goes directly from unwounded to slightly wounded in one phase, the effects of a scratch are ignored in favor of the effects of slight wounds.
Serious: Any time a location has taken a total number of hits between 1/2 and 3/4 of its hit capacity, it is seriously wounded. A serious wound reduces effective STR to half and decreases DEX by 4 (for a total reduction of 6 including the 2 for slight wounds). Additional serious wounds have no further effect on DEX or STR. However, if a character takes serious wounds to 3 or more hit locations, he immediately suffers the effects of a Critical Wound. A seriously wounded limb is useless until healed. If DEX is reduced to 0 or less, the character may not take any further actions during this combat.
Additionally, a seriously wounded character must roll under his END on 3d6 to avoid losing consciousness. This roll must be repeated each combat turn in which the character attempts to act. A serious wound to the head causes immediate unconsciousness. Each combat turn, the above roll is used to regain consciousness.
Critical: Any location taking hits in excess of 3/4 its hit capacity is critically wounded. Critical wounds to to any location causes immediate loss of consciousness. Blood loss will result in death in 10 minutes plus 1 minute for every 2 points END exceeds 10 (round down) if medical attention is not provided. Each turn, a critically wounded character rolls under END as a percentage to regain consciousness. This roll must be repeated each round he attempts to act. If consciousness is regained, the character will have half strength and his DEX will be reduced by 4 (for a total reduction of 10, 4 for critical, 4 for serious, and 2 for slight). If his DEX is zero or less, he may not take any further actions during this combat. Characters with critical head wounds will not regain consciousness without medical treatment.
Damage in excess of 1.25 times the hit capacity of a limb amputates. Similar damage to chest or abdomen requires surgery to repair. Damage in excess of 1.25 times the hit capacity of the head results in decapitation and instant death.
Damage in excess of 2 times the hit capacity of any location, completely destroys that location. If that location is a limb (arm or leg) it is amputated and destroyed. If that location is the head, the character is decapitated and the head is destroyed. If the location is the abdomen, the character is blown in two. If the location is the chest, the chest is blown open. Any hits in excess of 2 times the hit capacity to the head, chest, or abdomen, result in death, usually instantly.
Healing and Recovery
First Aid: First aid can be done in the field using a first aid or field medic's kit. If first aid is applied within 10 minutes of a wound, it will heal a d6 immediately, otherwise it will heal a d3. Subsequent first aid to the same location prevents infection and speeds healing if applied routinely (about twice a day). Successful first aid will stop bleeding and will stabilize critical wounds. Failed attempts may be repeated (each attempt take one combat turn). Each location must be treated separately. Critical failure does an additional point of damage and leave the character open to infection.
Moving the Wounded: Wounded characters may be moved. However, for each 4 hour movement period or part there of, they will take an addition point of damage to any critically wounded area.
Basic Healing Rate: A character's basic healing rate is a d6 per day to each location. This assumes proper rest, adequate food and shelter, and basic medical care (clean bandages changed regularly). Because of their severity, critical wounds subtract 2 from their healing roll minimum of 0 until they are healed to serious wounds. If a character has multiple critical wounds, subtract an additional 1 point from the healing roll minimum of 0 for each additional wound. For example, a character is caught in an explosion and suffers wounds to all seven hit locations, 3 locations being critical. Each day, the character would heal a d6 to all non-critical wound locations but would heal only a d6 - 4 to all critically wounded hit locations (d6 - 2 base - 2 for two additional critical wounds).
If a medic is treating the character on a regular basis, add 1 to the die roll. If a doctor is treating the character, add 3 to the die roll. If the character is being treated in a hospital or fully equipped ship's sickbay, add 1 to the die roll. Clearly critically wounded characters will need medical attention to improve their chances of survival.
Surgery will add the greater of 2d6 or enough points to bring a critically wounded location to a seriously wounded state. Critical success will add an addition d6 to the roll. Failure results in no change. Critical failure may result in loss of use or death depending on the location. One roll is made for each location operated on. A maximum of three locations may be operated on at one time then at least 3 days must pass before another operation may be attempted.
Any character who still has critical wounds after two weeks (14 days) dies.
Infection: Any character who has serious wounds that were not treated within 10 minutes of receiving them or who has had sub-standard medical care or who has had sub-standard conditions runs the risk of infection. The chance of infection is 20% for each serious wound location. That chance is reduced to 10% if antibiotics are administered within the first 8 hours of receiving the wound. If the character is not receiving proper care, each week of healing, the character must roll a check for each hit location that is still wounded (at any level).
If an infection occurs, all healing to all body parts stop. After a week an additional d6 of damage is taken to the infected hit location. Once an infection occurs, one attempt may be made per week to treat it, assuming proper supplies and equipment. If a hit location becomes critically wounded due to infection, the character becomes unconscious and remains so until the infection is cured and the location is healed to the slight level or they die.